Thrill seekers love roller coasters. Adventurers are always looking to explore the earth’s most interesting spaces. But what about the thrill-seeking adventurers? They search for every opportunity to ride 2018’s most interesting roller coaster (self-proclaimed). Our team strove to assemble a fully functional rollercoaster prototype that indulges the adventurous types with major global landmarks, all while providing an exhilarating ride for the adrenaline junkies. Fly with your head in the clouds, scale Big Ben, experience the Golden Gate Bridge, let the Sydney Opera House inspire you, let the wonders of the Great Pyramids take you, surf the Nile, and finally end up right where you belong: the airport, where you can do it all over again.

Our foam core roller coaster was my first introduction to design thinking. It was one of the first projects that helped me realize how much I wanted to incorporate design thinking into both my career and every-day life. It was apart of the class that inspired me to pursue a minor in human-centered design.

Project Goals

The landmark goals of this project were to design & develop a novel ride experience, to develop a compelling theme, and have a fully functional prototype.

Constraints

Constraints for the project are as follows:

1. The ‘rider’ may not be touched by a designers hands after the ride has started
2. No printed graphics or markers allowed in aesthetic design
3. The structure may ONLY be in contact with the 30″x40″ foam core footprint (no contact with ceilings, chairs, etc.)
4. Glue may be used only as an adhesive
5. One wooden dowel per team
6. Ten rubber bands per team
7. Two sheets of colored paper per team

Design Thinking: A Process

Step 1: Empathize

Defining empathy in the context of this project was centered on understanding roller coasters & rides in general. To truly empathize, my group and I explored questions such as:

• What makes the concept of going on a ride fun?
• Why are theme parks fun?
• What are some common tropes of theme parks?
• What makes an experience thrilling?
• What types of characteristics appeal to the human sense of excitement?

Step 2: Define

Our ‘clientele’ needed a new ride concept; one unique from what exists & what is common. To accomplish that, we generated some ‘how might we…’ statements such as:

• HMW incorporate existing, successful ride characteristics into a novel concept?
• HMW emulate fun & excitement
• HMW make our concept stand out from others

Once our problems & goals were outlined, we moved on to everybody’s favorite stage… Brainstorming

Step 3: Ideate

To begin the journey of ideation, we brainstormed possible track sections. This facilitated need-based ideas [excitement & novelty of ride] without restriction of the second part of our problem: the theme. Brainstorming & prototyping track sections before worrying about the theme aspect allowed us to see what did and did not work physically.

After individual brainstorming track concepts, our group got together and consolidated the best of what worked for each individual. Then, we started brainstorming overall themes. With everything from a simulated pinball machine to pool tables to olympic events; we finally settled on the theme of world travel.

Once we decided on our overall theme, we were able to do more prototyping and testing (of course, amongst more brainstorming) of our final concepts.

Steps 4 & 5: Prototype & Test

After building prototypes & testing them until they fit our standards for both look and functionality, we moved on to build the final product.

Project Takeaways

Novel Experience ✓ | Compelling Theme ✓ | Functional prototype ✓

As I previously mentioned, this was my first real project that dove into the design thinking process. Although it was pretty high stress for a couple of weeks, I immediately fell in love. This project truly helped me understand that the craziest ideas aren’t always… the craziest. While I previously had a lot of group experience in engineering projects, this project gave me a chance to work collaboratively on a strictly design-based project & dip my toes in that side of project management. Overall, it was a great introduction to design.